10 December 2014

UGANDA : Dulah vows to fight to the end

Dullah (L), one of few standout performers in the struggling Tiger Power
side, rises to lay up past Oilers guard Jeff Omondi recently. PHOTO BY
ISMAIL KEZALA

By Andrew MwanguhyaIf playing basketball is his forte, play-acting - he loves to call it ‘entertainment; is his specialty. One
moment he will infuriate his opponents by going down holding his leg at
an arm’s scratch, and the other; he will have his admirers applaud in
awe his spell-binding no-look passes and amusing celebrations. But there
was no play-acting when Daily Monitor brought it up to the Tiger Head
Power guard Abdallahi Ramadhan aka Dulah that tonight could mark his
fourth straight finals without a title.Power go into tonight’s Game
Four of the best-of-seven Pepsi National Basketball League final series
trailing City Oilers 3-0. They must win. And having won his only ring in
2009, then with Warriors as they saw off Power 3-1 in the best-of-five
final series, Dulah has gone on to lose finales in 2010 with Warriors,
plus 2012 and last year with Falcons.“Sometimes you do your best but
it’s important that every player contributes,” says Dulah, 41, “We have
let each other down so far but we have talked about it. I really pray
to God to give us just this one game. After that, something can happen.”Power
have been pedestrian thus far, with Norman Blick struggling to get into
the groove and the rest of coach Bernice Ankunda’s men failing to step
up when Paul Odong, Joseph Ikong and Dulah - the few shining stars -
have had off-days.“That’s basketball,” adds Dulah, scorer of 32
points in his last two games, “You can’t light up every time. When you
are off, your teammates should stand up. But even when you have an off
day, you contribute in different ways, which we haven’t done.”

“When you fail to shoot, do something else… pass and bring your teammates into play, drive in, do something.”

Kami desperate to wrap itOilers centre Kami Kabange, alongside Geoff Omondi, Ben Komakech and Jimmy Enabu will be determined to kill it off.“We
have failed to mark Kami (Kabange),” admits Dulah, “You give Kami space
and he will kill you with his shooting and rebounds. We have to improve
our defence and we must fight to the end.” Kabange, averaging 20 points
and eight rebounds in the finals, knows too well the dangers of giving
Power another chance at life.“We have to limit our mistakes because
Power know how to capitalise on mistakes,” says the man with one of the
cleanest jump shots around. “We must win because momentum can change if
we let Power off.”